


Maybe We Could Leave Here and No One Would Know

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: Pet Sounds [11]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe, Drama, F/M, Friendship, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-07
Updated: 2013-01-07
Packaged: 2017-11-24 00:01:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/627995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If they suspected Clyde was let out one day and never returned, odds were low on her being allowed to come and go as she pleased.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Maybe We Could Leave Here and No One Would Know

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from the Matchbox 20 song, Back 2 Good, which has been a Gideon/Prentiss song since they first became a ship in my head.

Emily pranced into the kitchen when she heard the food can opening. She’d had a great nap and now it was time for some dinner. Doctor Tom had her glass bowl on the counter; he was giving her the good stuff. It smelled like salmon. Emily couldn’t help but meow…it smelled delicious.

“Alright, Emily, dinner is coming.” He smiled. “Come and get it.”

She leaped up on the counter, leaning her head into the bowl to sniff it. She wasn’t exactly starving but it had been a couple of hours since she’d eaten.

“Where's your little buddy?” Doctor Tom asked as he petted her smooth fur. “I haven’t seen him much since this morning, have you.”

“No.” Emily hated to talk with her mouth full and it wasn’t as if the human understood her anyway.

“I’ll go outside and get him. You enjoy your dinner.”

“You might just become my new favorite human Doctor Tom; I'm serious.” Emily said. “Don’t tell the Ambassador cuz she gives me croissants and we read the Times. But you're cool, I mean that.” she put her face back into her glass bowl. 

One good thing about humans having money is they liked to indulge in the good stuff. And this cat food that the Ambassador bought for her was always the good stuff. There were none of the cans of cheap, grainy stuff in the house. For breakfast and lunch Emily ate the meaty nuggets from the bag but dinner was always something good. It might not be late night lobster in Paris but it suited her just fine.

“Clyde!” Doctor Tom walked all around the side and back yard. “Clyde, come and get your dinner! Hey Clyde!”

Tom checked the bushes, the shrubs, and his wife’s prized roses. The Tonkinese was nowhere to be found. He checked under the porch but Clyde wasn’t there either. Soon he was walking up and down the street. Tom checked under cars and in the street to be sure he wasn’t hit by a car passing through. 

He checked his neighbors’ yards and asked some of the kids playing outside if they’d seen him. No one had, at least not since this morning. While Andrea Harris was out jogging at around 8:30am she said she saw Clyde in his yard. He appeared to be lurking and acting a little strange. She just assumed that he was hunting birds or a squirrel. She didn’t see him for more than a few moments but was sure it was him because of his distinctive coat. 

“OK, this isn’t good.” Tom walked back into the house.

Emily looked up from her meal, which was almost gone. He was mumbling and she didn’t understand him. But it wasn’t hard to tell from the look on his face that something was wrong. Then it hit her…Clyde was gone. He’d left her without even saying goodbye. How could he do that? 

He promised that he wasn’t going to do that. There had to be another explanation. But what else could it possibly be? She saw the worry on Doctor Tom’s face and it matched the worry now churning in the pit of her belly. When he came over to pet her head it didn’t make Emily feel any better.

“Do you know where Clyde went, Emily? I know you can't talk but I really wish you could talk to me right now. How far could he have gotten? I really hope he's OK. I'm going to have to find him out there.”

Emily let out a meow of despair, jumping down from the counter. She went over to the side door but Tom rushed to close it. He didn’t want to lose her too. Emily meowed again, getting up on her back legs and putting a paw on the window. She wasn’t going to find him. 

Who knew how many hours he’d been gone. Clyde was swift and smart…he could be out of the country by now. How many times had they hitchhiked from one town or one country to another? Turning from the closed door, she rushed out of the room. Emily no longer had an appetite.

***

“Sweetheart, we have a problem.” Tom said from the bathroom later that evening.

“I know that I've been overindulging Emily lately but I can't help it. It’s nice to have her in the bed with me as a little cuddle buddy. I like the cat, OK? I know I wasn’t sure how this pet thing was going to go but I really like her. 

“And she seems moody today. Perhaps she and Clyde had a territorial pissing earlier, figuratively I mean. I haven’t seen him all evening so no doubt he’s hiding. I just don’t want her to feel unloved so she’ll stay with us for the night. I won't make it a permanent thing. I promise.”

He poked his head out the door. Tom was unable to stop the smile on his face despite what he was about to tell her. Elizabeth the cat lover was utterly adorable. His wife wasn’t attached to much. She liked her work and her travel and her shopping trips and bridge games. 

She liked him and for that Tom felt eternally grateful. But he had watched her begin to form bonds with Emily. It made Tom feel good all the way down on the tips of his toes. It wasn’t quite the same with Clyde but that didn’t mean she was just going to take the news in stride.

“This isn’t about Emily sharing our bed.” he came out of the bathroom, running a towel through his damp hair. The cat hair bothered his breathing sometimes but it was alright. And Elizabeth being happy was worth taking some Claritin. Tom sat down on the bed. “This is about Clyde.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I think Clyde ran away.”

“What?” Elizabeth looked at him. “Where did he run to?”

“Well the point is that I don’t know. I went to get him for dinner tonight and couldn’t find him. I looked all over the yard; I checked the neighborhood too. No one has seen him since this morning.”

“Where could he possibly be?”

“I don’t know sweetheart.” Tom shook his head. “I know he’d been unhappy…”

“Don’t start talking like that, as if he committed suicide or something. He's just a cat, Tom.”

“I know that they're different from us but maybe Clyde had another home before he got here. Maybe he missed his family and even though he didn’t dislike us he would never stop loving them. Maybe he was just looking for an opportunity to run. Knowing Emily was here now might have given him that.”

“I think you're giving him far too much credit love.” Elizabeth said.

Emily looked at her and meowed. She couldn’t make out all they were saying but she thought the Ambassador might be saying that cats were a bit dim. That was absolutely not true. Some cats were dim, and so were some humans. 

But Clyde was definitely not one of those cats and neither was she. The Ambassador was brilliant so it bothered her a little that she thought of Emily as stupid. It wasn’t as if she would be able to properly communicate that to her. She meowed again.

“No offense.” Elizabeth petted her head. “I'm not calling you stupid…I wouldn’t do that. Tom, I want to try to find Clyde. He might be out there and he might be hurt. Some of these neighborhood urchins aren’t to be trusted. What if they grabbed him and are torturing him or something? We have to find him.”

“What do you want to do?” Tom asked.

“We can make up some Missing posters. You have those pictures you took of him being adorable on the deck. We can take one and do that. I'm going to work from home tomorrow so I’ll make a poster and some copies.”

“I'm sorry sweetheart.” He caressed her face and petted Emily’s head.

“I just don’t want him out there all alone if he could have a nice, warm home with us.” Elizabeth replied. “And I really don’t want Emily to be lonely. We brought her here so she could interact with another feline and now we might not have one.”

“She’ll always have a friend in you.” Tom managed a smile.

“You're teasing me.”

“I'm teasing you just a little,” he kissed her nose. “Yes.”

“I just hope he's alright out there tonight.” Elizabeth leaned back against her pillows and smiled some as Emily cuddled close. “It’s supposed to rain late tonight and all of tomorrow.”

“It’s been a really rainy spring. Sometimes you forget about that and hope when the weather breaks from the winter, it really breaks. No such luck right now. I'm sure that Clyde will find good shelter. Sadly, a lot of cats make it out there on their own or in bands.”

“Why do you know so much about cats?” she asked.

“I know so much about everything sweetheart…I read.”

“What time do you have to go to the hospital in the morning?”

“I have surgery at 9:30 so I want to be there by 8:30 prepping and making sure everything is as it should be. That means up by quarter to seven with little time to spare. I'm going to get eight hours tonight.”

Elizabeth looked at her watch and smiled. It was barely past eight o’clock. Tom getting eight hours meant that they had plenty of time to do what they pleased. When she looked at him, he saw it in her eyes. They’d known each other for a long time; words were rarely needed.

Emily saw it too and held back her sigh. These two were always all over each other. She guessed it was a good thing; what was the point of being married if there was no love there. And the Ambassador and Doctor didn’t just love each other. They lusted after each other as well. 

There was always plenty of mounting and lots of noises. Emily knew sex noises when she heard them, she was no dummy. So she jumped off the bed and headed out of the room. She’d come back later when the show was over.

The house was quiet as Emily made her way down to the kitchen. She didn’t know if her human owners knew it but there was a way outside from there. All the doors were locked now. The Ambassador and the Doctor were still debating about possibly getting her a kitty flap. 

Emily wasn’t sure where that conversation was going. She was getting better with English but they talked so fast when just talking amongst themselves. If they suspected Clyde was let out one day and never returned, odds were low on her being allowed to come and go as she pleased. For that she might never forgive him.

She jumped into the sill of the window by the breakfast nook. Up on her back legs, she reached for the lock and unlatched it with her paw. On all fours she pushed the window out and open. It didn’t take much for Emily to get outside. She was standing on the shrubs so there wasn’t even a drop. 

She just had to be careful; there were spaces and with her small paws she could slip into one of them and injure herself. But Emily had always been wily and graceful. Soon enough she was jumping down onto the lawn, running across toward the sidewalk. The rain fell light but steady. Getting wet was something that stopped bothering her a long time ago. 

She stood on the curb and looked both ways before going across the street. Emily was a black cat; not so easy for cars to see at night. The Ambassador bought her a great little name tag with a bright pink collar. The color wasn’t Emily’s favorite but she knew it helped people see her coming. Whether that was good or bad she wasn’t quite sure.

On Sam and Jessie’s porch now, Emily knew exactly where to go. The French doors on this side didn’t open but she was sure to get someone’s attention with a little scratching. As long as that someone was feline or canine, Emily would be OK. In a few minutes Penelope came over. She dipped under the curtain so they could see each other.

“Hey Emily.” She held her paw up to the glass.

“Hey Penelope. I was just wondering if Gideon was around.”

“Oh sure, he's around here somewhere.”

“Can you tell him I'm out here please? I really need to talk to him.”

“Oh sure.” the tabby grinned. “I’ll get him right now.”

“Thanks.”

Emily didn’t even care that Penelope was probably under the impression that her grand scheme to make the black cat fall in love with the Russian blue was working like a charm. She’d tried to talk to her about it, talk her down so to speak, but Penelope was not easily swayed. Once an idea was in her head, especially when true love was the subject…all bets were off. So Emily just moved past it. She figured if she didn’t bring it up, Penelope wouldn’t either. The plan was supposed to be a big secret anyway.

Sighing, Emily went and sat under the glider. She didn’t want to be caught out here by Sam or Jessie. It was late and that would surely warrant a phone call to her owners. She didn’t want to interrupt their mounting shenanigans. Emily definitely didn’t want them to realize she knew how to get in and out.

“Emily?” she heard Jason’s voice before she saw him.

“I'm under the glider. I didn’t want anyone to see me.”

He slid under the glider too. When he saw her it made Jason smile.

“I'm so sorry to bother you. I know it’s late and this weather is less than ideal.”

“I'm fine, really. Rain isn’t my favorite but that’s not because it isn’t lovely. I'm not feeling so bad today but is something the matter.”

“Clyde left.” She lowered her voice when she said it. It was the first time she was saying it out loud. It made the whole thing real. He was gone. “Clyde left and he didn’t say goodbye.”

“Are you sure that he's gone?” Jason asked.

“He didn’t come in for dinner tonight. He was here this morning. We had breakfast together and then he said he was going to go out and sun himself before the rain came. I goofed around with Elle this afternoon and then went in for a nap. 

“When dinnertime came, the Doctor looked for him but he never came home. Jason, he left without saying goodbye. How could he do that to me? He promised he would say goodbye.”

“I'm sorry.” This time it was he who put his arms around her neck. Jason pulled her close, Emily purring against him. She shook some and he knew how upset she was. He wasn’t sure exactly how she felt about Clyde. They didn’t talk about it much; Jason wasn’t sure it was his business. But he knew she was sad and comforting her was important.

“Clyde has never lied to me. Some days we were in the middle of hell but he never lied. He never lied until today.”

“You call it a lie, and believe me I understand why. Sometimes it’s not that easy though.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I've done my share of goodbyes over the years. Every single one has been agonizing in its own way. When you love someone, when their existence makes your world a better place…” Jason sighed. “It might have been impossible. Its not that he didn’t say goodbye; he just couldn’t.”

“I'm not in the mood to forgive him.” Emily shook her head.

“I know, but maybe someday. You surely know him better than I, Emily. I'm just speaking from my experience. Check around the house. It’s possible that even though he couldn’t say goodbye that he left something for you. It’s fresh right now but in the next couple of days you should look in your favorite places, or in his.”

“OK.” She cuddled close to him and Jason tightened his embrace.

“I really am so sorry that you're upset. I know you cared for him.”

“He wanted his freedom; I think deep down we all understand that. I just didn’t think it would happen again. I woke up and he was just gone. It’s better than thinking he was dead, like I did in Paris. There's a little part of me, I'm so sad to say it, but this little part of me wishes I would've never seen him again.”

Jason didn’t know what to say to that. He’d lost friends over the years; human, feline, and otherwise. He’d actually gotten used to being alone, being solitary. It sure kept him from getting his heart broken. 

Then he met Mr. Kassmeyer and all of that changed. He met Emily and was probably right back to square one. He didn’t know which was worse sometimes…feeling too much or nothing at all. Jason couldn’t imagine how holding her and feeling nothing would feel.

“How much time has gone by?” she whispered. The rain was falling a bit heavier now. She probably needed to get back. Too bad it felt so nice lying there with him.

“I honestly don’t know. Do you need to go?”

“Probably. That doesn't mean I want to.”

“I should probably get back inside. I'm sure Penelope is desperate to know what's happening out here.” Jason smiled.

“I'm sure. OK, well,” reluctantly she moved out of his arms. “I’ll see you soon. It’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow.”

“I know. It might help you sleep well. We tend to forget our troubles when we’re asleep. This might be doubly so on a great fleece kitty bed.”

“It's still the best bed ever.” Emily smiled. “Goodnight, Gideon.”

“Goodnight.”

They both climbed from under the glider. He watched her go around the porch and down the front steps. When Jason saw her get safely across the street, which wasn’t easy in the dark with her being black, he turned and went into the house. Penelope was curled up on the couch with Jessie watching a black and white movie. That would save him from any embarrassing questions. So Jason went into his kitty condo and curled up himself. If he was lucky he’d sleep straight through till morning.

Emily climbed back into the window of her kitchen. Closing it wasn’t as easy as opening it was; she didn’t want to smash her paw. It was a delicate operation but Emily managed. She locked the window back, jumped down, and headed to the master bedroom. The Ambassador and the Doctor were enjoying their afterglow. They lay in bed holding each other and enjoying television. Elizabeth smiled when she saw Emily walk back into the room.

“Hey there, where did you disappear to?”

“I think she was giving us a little privacy earlier.” Tom replied.

“C'mere, Emily, come up on the bed.”

The cat smiled and jumped up hen Elizabeth patted the mattress. It was nice cuddling between the two of them and watching TV. She didn’t much care what was on. Emily just knew she wasn’t lonely anymore. And even though she felt sad and heartbroken tonight, it wouldn’t last forever. There was more to life than disappointment. She was living that life right now.

***


End file.
